intelligence

News, discoveries and … fun 1. Bacteria in your gut – some crave sugar, others want fat – might be dictating what you eat. (Learn more at The Atlantic) 2. Having an office window can help you sleep at night, lower your blood pressure and keep you in a better mood. (Learn more at AARP) 3. $100 is worth $115.74 in Mississippi, but only $84.60 in Washington, D.C. (Learn more at Washington Post) >> America’s Best Small Towns 4. The complexity of a …

I lived in Stockholm for two years after college and doggedly learned Swedish, even though most Swedes speak beautiful English. Not only could I communicate better with then-tiny (now giant) Swedish nephews, turns out it was a good move for my brain. Learning a second language – even as an adult – helps protect the brain from aging, says a new study published in the Annals of Neurology. “Learning a language later in life is a challenge but is very, very good for …

Americans of different ages don’t agree about government surveillance of their telephone and online communications, two new polls show. When it comes to the National Security Agency’s collecting and analyzing Americans’ phone records, 56 percent of adults of all ages support the idea. Those 50 to 64 are right in line with their younger counterparts, but those 65 and older are slightly more likely (61 percent) to support the idea. That’s according to a poll from the Pew Research Center …